JAY JOSHI
Good films can indeed be made using smartphones, but there is more to it than just whipping out your phone and starting to film. This was the conclusion drawn by the panel at the Open Forum held at old GMC building on Tuesday as a part of IFFI 2018. The topic of discussion was ‘Are cell phones turning everyone into a filmmaker?’ the panel consisted of Israeli filmmaker and IFFI2018 lifetime achievement awardee Dan Wolman, wildlife filmmaker Gautam Pandey, film critic and documentary filmmaker Ashok Rane, and chairman of Society of Motion Pictures and Television Engineers (India section) Ujjwal Nirgudkar the discussion was moderated by deputy director of communication for Press Information Bureau, Dheep Joy Mampalli
Beginning the discussion, Dheep Joy Mampalli asked how filmmaking using smartphones is impacting ideas in the field. In reply filmmaker Dan Wolman observed how filmmaking has evolved over the years. “When I made my first film back in early 60s, we needed a lot of money for the reels, and we had to get them developed. Now, my young granddaughter makes videos using phone.” he said. “You do not need too many people to make a film now. There is a complaint that a lot of rubbish is made, but eventually, good filmmakers will rise.” added Wolman.
SMPTE chairman Ujjwal Nirgudkar underlined that phones are not primarily made for filmmaking and thus cannot deliver cinematic quality. However, they can be a good starting point for aspiring filmmakers. “They are primarily phones, and are good for experimentation and training for youngsters, but young filmmakers should move on to better equipment.” he said. “When we shoot with phones, we generally do not pay attention to lighting. We shoot in available light, and that affects the depth of field.” The point was countered by Wolman who opined that cell phones will improve with time, and stories are more important than technology when it comes to filmmaking.
Adding to that, Ashok Rane shared his experiences of interactions with filmmaking students and producers. He observed that most students talksed about how they will use advanced technology, but did not talk about the story of the film. “If a class of filmmaking starts with outlining different types of lenses, there there is something wrong with that class. We do not need to teach students how to make a film. We need to ask them ‘why do you want to make a film when there are so many filmmakers already?’” said Rane, asserting that one needs to talk about the philosophy behind filmmaking first.
Wildlife filmmaker Gautam Pandey outlined how cellphones have impacted ideas in filmmaking and examined the issues related to the same. “Cell phones have made a lot of people filmmakers, but they are connected shorter attention spans. Also, there is post-production involved in making films with a phone.” said Pandey. He further noted that there is lots of competition in such kind of filmmaking.
